I just ran 11 miles!!

I am so stoked. Tonight was my first double-digit run and I was so nervous. I had an 11 miler scheduled for tonight and I was psyching myself out all day.

Here’s the breakdown…

Distance: 11.02 miles

Time: 2:04:26

Pace: 11:17 min/mile

Location: Treadmill, 1.5% incline

This was my first run using any kind of food. I had the strawberry GU Chomps and loved them (product review to come). There’s 8 in a pack (180 calories total). I ate the first “chomp” at mile 3, and ate one every mile thereafter. Why mile 3, you ask? Because there were only 8 in a pack and I knew I could handle the first couple miles without anything. I wanted to be able to spread them out throughout the whole run to give myself reasonably consistent levels of electrolytes, etc. So by starting at mile 3, I had one for every mile that was left.

I definitely noticed a difference using them. Right around the end of each mile, I felt my focus starting to wane. But at each mile marker, I popped one and had a couple mouthfuls of water and immediately felt like I had more energy and better focus. Placebo? Who knows? The point is, I felt better.